Age 8 plus
Gracie Fairshaw and the Trouble at the Tower
Susan Brownrigg
THERE'S plenty of drama at the tower – the world-famous Blackpool Tower no less! – in the second book of Lancashire lass Susan Brownrigg’s brilliant middle-grade thriller series. The star of the Christmas show is amateur sleuth Gracie Fairshaw who lives with her brother and parents in a resort boarding house in the 1930s, and finds that mystery and skulduggery are never far away.
In this exciting new adventure, Gracie becomes embroiled in
a series of suspicious events at the real-life Blackpool Tower professional
Children’s Ballet Company which delighted audiences for decades, and leads us
behind the scenes of the equally real Blackpool Gazette’s newspapers offices.
The Tower Ballroom was home to a professional children’s ballet between 1902 and 1972. Girls would queue around the block to audition for a place, with some dancers going on to find fame and fortune. Brownrigg, who set her first book in the series, Gracie Fairshaw and the Mysterious Guest, against the backdrop of the 1935 Blackpool illuminations, fills her stories with such rich authentic detail and beautifully drawn characters that you can almost taste the fish and chips, smell the sea salt in the air and hear the trams rolling down the promenade.
Click HERE for Lancashire Post reviews
In December of 1935, Gracie is delighted to get a sneak
preview of the Children’s Ballet’s Christmas spectacular. But from the moment
the curtain rises on the new show, things start to go horribly wrong for the
young dancers. Accidents, pranks and a poison pen letter make Gracie wonder if
someone is trying to spoil the show. Can Gracie, her brother George and their
friends, Tom and Violet Emberton, stop the saboteur before their final,
dastardly act?
Gracie is an inspirational lead player…. a girl with a mild
disability, the heart of a lion and big ambitions who is fearless in her
pursuit of truth and justice. Add on Brownrigg’s nostalgic and exhilarating
evocation of the North West’s most famous resort in its heyday and you have one
of the best children’s mystery series currently on the shelves.
(UCLan Publishing, paperback, £6.99)
The Bear who Sailed the Ocean on an Iceberg
Emily Critchley
WHAT do you do when you find a huge polar bear in your
freezer? Delight in the fun, humour and reassurance of this heartfelt story
about a lonely boy who overcomes difficult family problems with the help of a
polar bear. This moving tale comes from Carnegie-nominated author Emily
Critchley and tackles serious issues of friendship, bullying, divorce and
bereavement with a warm, gentle and comic touch. So how did Monty get in
Patrick’s parents’ freezer? And who is Monty (official name, Wilbur Ambrose
Cedric Reginald Montague, the Third, or Monty to his friends)? He talks like he
might have swallowed a dictionary as well as a library – he has read more books
than Patrick knew existed – and his stomach is always rumbling. How is Patrick
going to feed him on his pocket money that does not stretch much further than a
few tins of sardines? And how will he protect Monty from neighbours like Mr
Crankly who might report him? And if that isn’t enough, Patrick is taking care
of his mum who suffers from depression, and his dad isn’t there. But,
fortunately for Patrick, there’s always Monty. With Christmas vibes running
through its pages, and with a story full of hope and heart, this surreal
adventure starring a larger-than-life polar bear who can quote from classic
books is a true wintertime winner!
(Everything with Words, paperback, £7.99)
The Girl Who Talked to Trees
Natasha Farrant and Lydia Corry
BELIEVING in the magic of trees could save the world! That
is the message which speaks loudly and clearly in a sumptuous gift book from
the Costa Book Award-winning team of author Natasha Farrant and illustrator Lydia
Corry. Featuring magical interlinked
stories about what one girl learns from talking to trees throughout time and
from around the world, the companion volume to the empowering book Eight
Princesses and a Magic Mirror reminds us all of the importance of trees in our
lives. Olive’s best friend is a 400-year-old oak tree, and it’s in danger. As
she tumbles into its magic world, she makes it a promise. From deep roots to
high branches, a Persian garden to an underwater forest, from tulip trees to
wild apple and a vengeful box, she listens to the trees telling stories for all
time. And she keeps her promise. With a serious conservation message and facts
about tree science alongside the magic and wonder of seven beautifully imagined
original stories, this full-colour gift book will enchant and inspire young
readers.
(Zephyr, hardback, £12.99)
Flember: The Glowing Skull
Jamie Smart
IF your youngsters like laugh-out-loud comedy and lots of
madcap action, then gift them the third book in extraordinarily talented
illustrator and author Jamie Smart’s ingenious Flember illustrated novel
series. Packed with all the outrageously comical, addictive and high-energy
action we have come to expect from Smart’s work, this series certainly hits the
mark with middle grade readers. Here we meet up again with boy-inventor Dev, who
has a strange and mystical power called Flember, and his best friend Boja, a
huge red robot bear. The two chaotic adventurers have found the super hi-tech,
mega-modern city of Prosperity but everything there is really weird. People are
battling it out for control of magic Flember power in epic races, the sewers
are disgustingly stinky and Boja discovers he has superpowers. Will they ever
get home? Smart has proved to be a comic genius and there are snorts and
sniggers to enjoy on every page of this gloriously anarchic story.
(David Fickling Books, paperback, £6.99)
Anisha, Accidental Detective:
Show Stoppers!
Serena Patel and Emma McCann
ANISHA Mistry’s larger-than-life British-Indian family steal
the show AGAIN in the latest baffling mystery for everyone’s favourite
(accidental!) detective. Award-winning author Serena Patel and illustrator Emma
McCann are back with a new case in their brilliant detective series starring
reluctant sleuth Anisha and her best friend and fellow investigator Milo. Anisha
is so busy… her class is putting on a musical and they only have one week
before curtain up. And, as it’s nearly Diwali, Granny Jas is cooking non-stop
and Auntie Bindi is determined to bring the bling. Anisha is leaving the
theatrics to Milo but as the director’s assistant, she has loads to do... especially
now everything is going wrong. Even Molly the cat is forgetting her cues! Miss
Jive believes the show is cursed but Anisha thinks someone is trying to stop
the production. Time for Anisha, the Accidental Detective, to step into the spotlight.
Join Anisha and Milo as they take to the stage in the search for the scheming
showstopper, and share all the fun, action and mystery that always seem to
appear when the madcap Mistry family are in the spotlight!
(Usborne, paperback, £5.99)
At the Height of the Moon: A Book of Bedtime Poetry and Art
Edited by Alison Baverstock , Matt Cunningham and Annette Roeder
HELP your children to drift off to sleep – and inspire in
them a lifelong love of art and poetry – with this stunning bedtime book which
draws on centuries of artistic and literary traditions from around the world. Pairing
works of art with poems and short fiction, At the Height of the Moon is divided
into eight thematic sections and features dozens of double-page spreads that families
will enjoy as part of their bedtime routine. The carefully chosen, diverse
selection of art includes works by John Singer Sargent, Georgia O’Keeffe,
Utagawa Hiroshige, Edgar Allen Poe and Henri Le Sidoner among many others, all beautifully
reproduced in luminous colour. Accompanying these artworks are poems,
mediations and short fiction which range from light-hearted verse and passages
from Shakespeare to lullabies and spooky folktales. Together the words and
pictures create meaningful impressions that children will treasure and remember
as they drift off to sleep… and hold on to for the rest of their lives. With
its ribbon marker, fabulous illustrations, wise words and high quality
production, this is a gorgeous gift book for both youngsters and adults.
(Prestel, hardback, £18.99)
Inside the Suitcase
Clotilde Perrin
EVERYONE will be in a flap when they turn the pages of this
brilliantly inventive lift-the-flaps adventure which offers the magic of a fairy
tale, the surreal atmosphere of Alice in Wonderland, and the interactive fun of
a puzzle book. There are a host of intriguing flaps within flaps for little
ones to get their hands on as French author and illustrator Clotilde Perrin
casts a spell with her tale of a boy travelling the world with a suitcase full
of tricks and treasures. Away behind the hills you’ll find a charming little
house. Who’s inside… knock, knock! Look, there’s a boy packing his suitcase.
Lift the flaps to see what he takes with him and then join him as he travels over
oceans and mountains, under water and into the forest. Delve deeper into each
page to see its hidden secrets and, whatever you do, don’t take your eyes off
the suitcase! This timeless tale of travelling the globe and making memories is
brimming with mystery, atmosphere and discovery. The simple but richly
evocative illustrations, and the joy of multi-layered discoveries on every page,
are all guaranteed to delight curious youngsters. A voyage of adventure that
children will want to experience time and time again!
(Gecko Press, hardback, £16.99)
The Smart Cookie
Jory John and Pete Oswald
ENJOY food for thought as bestselling author and illustrator
team, Jory John and Pete Oswald, turn up the heat for another tasty and
inventive picture book! This entertaining new romp in the Food Group series
features a cookie whose life hasn’t always been a cakewalk. The problem is that
the cookie never felt like a smart cookie, no matter how hard she tried, and especially
in comparison to all the clever cupcakes and brilliant rolls in the bakery
where she lives. So will a dash of creativity and a sprinkle of confidence be
enough to help her learn that perfect scores and having all the answers aren’t
the only ingredients for being clever? This terrific top team can’t put a foot
wrong when it comes to conjuring up child-friendly stories with important life
messages, all carefully baked to perfection inside John’s warm and witty
wordplay, and Oswald’s captivating, high-energy artwork. Get ready for giggles
galore as youngsters gorge on the antics of some cute cookies while learning
valuable lessons about confidence and self-esteem.
(HarperCollins, hardback, £12.99)
Lily Takes a Walk
Satoshi Kitamura
THE unspoken fears of childhood are confronted with wit,
warmth and smiles in this welcome new outing for Japanese author and
illustrator Satoshi Kitamura’s classic picture book which won hearts and minds
back in the 1980s. Republished in an enlarged format with extra artwork, Lily
Takes a Walk stars a little girl and her pet dog Nicky who, in an ironic twist,
possesses an outrageously overactive imagination. When Lily takes a walk with
Nicky, she notices many lovely things like the sunset, a friendly neighbour and
the ducks on the canal. But poor Nicky only sees monsters, snakes and fierce
creatures lurking in every corner and at every turn. So which version of the
walk is true… Lily’s, Nicky’s or both? Kitamura’s eternally popular, funny and
gently scary story helps children to confront nightmares and fears with
confidence whilst delivering an entertaining twist in its fold-out last page.
Imaginative and inventive, this is a picture book for every generation to
treasure!
(Scallywag Press, hardback, £10.99)
The Lights that Dance in the Night
Yuval Zommer
AUTHOR and illustrator Yuval Zommer spreads his own special
glow over the festive season with a bright and beautiful picture book celebrating
the wonder of the Northern Lights. The Lights that Dance in the Night – with
its sparkling cover, beautiful rhyming text and atmospheric illustrations – is
a gentle and colourful reminder of the threats to our fragile planet. During
long, dark winters, the Northern Lights dazzle in Arctic skies and here Zommer
imagines their fleeting journey from space to Earth and how they weave a
welcome magic for the animals and people living in the frozen lands below. With
an ethereal beauty to both the words and the illustrations, heartfelt messages
about the peace that comes from togetherness, and the dangers of global warming
radiating subtly from the pages, Zommer puts the living world at the heart of
his powerful storytelling, bringing the very youngest children a lyrically
written, resonant and utterly charming story. A verbal and visual treat to
treasure for yourself… or as a memorable gift for others.
(Oxford University Press, hardback, £12.99)
Zoom: Farm Adventure
Zoom: Building Site Adventure
Susan Hayes and Aviel Basil
ENJOY a day on a busy farm and find out what goes on at a building site with two exciting and innovative board books which were specially created for all young adventurers. Zoom: Farm Adventure and Zoom: Building Site Adventure are two new titles in a board book series from What on Earth Publishing which specialises in non-fiction children's books.
(What on Earth Publishing, board books, £10.99 each)
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